Our History

Equipping the saints for the work of ministry

HISTORY OF CALVARY CHAPEL

In 1965, Pastor Chuck Smith began his ministry at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa with just 25 people. From the beginning, Pastor Chuck welcomed all, young and old, without judgment, placing his emphasis on the teaching of the Word of God. His simple, yet sound, biblical approach draws 25,000 people weekly.
 
With a sincere concern for the lost, Pastor Chuck made room in his heart and his home for a generation of hippies and surfers, generating a movement of the Holy Spirit that spread from the West Coast to the East Coast, and now, throughout the world. What began as a small local church has now grown into an international ministry of over 1,500 fellowships throughout the world.
 
For a more in-depth look at the history of Calvary Chapel, we recommend reading The Reproducers. You can download a free digital copy as a PDF or ePub here.
 
You can also visit Calvary Chapel Association for more information about and/or to locate other Calvary Chapel churches.
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History of Calvary Chapel Ridgecrest

Calvary Chapel Ridgecrest was formed as a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of Jesus Christ as a Bible Study in 1979.  In 1980, the Bible Study moved into the Senior Citizen’s building and in 1983, the Lord provided us with our first Sanctuary/Sunday school building. As the congregation continued to grow, God blessed us with a new Sanctuary/Fellowship Hall/Offices building in 2013 and we are committed to seek and live out God’s vision for our church and our vision Scripture of Ephesians 4:12-13, “For the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”  This vision involves all of us taking an active role; from the leaders faithfully dedicating themselves to the clear and accurate teaching of the Word of God, and the congregation dedicating themselves to “being equipped,” and serving in “the work of the ministry.”  And so, the calling of the church is two-fold; first, to bring glory to God, and second, to equip the saints to serve Jesus Christ and to help them grow and mature in their walk with the Lord   We currently have three buildings on our campus and offer ministries from adult services to youth services; home fellowships to appropriate age/gender bible studies; and from community to worldwide missionary outreaches.

CCR Founding Pastor - Glenn Hill

In 1980, I was sent to the “foothills of the Sierra’s,” by Pastor Don McClure, to serve as the Sr. Pastor for a small church that just grew from a Bible Study into a Sunday church service in Ridgecrest.  I ministered for 40 years at CCR as their Sr. Pastor and stepped down in 2020 due to health reasons & to allow for a younger generation to minister CCR into the future.  I have been married since 1975, and I have two boys and 4 grandkids.